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Confirmed: Garde leaves Aston Villa by mutual consent

Remi Garde has left his position as Aston Villa manager by mutual consent, the Premier League club have confirmed.

The Frenchman replaced Tim Sherwood in November on a three-and-a-half-year deal, but has been unable to prevent their slide towards relegation, winning only two league matches while in charge.

Villa sit bottom of the Premier League, 12 points from safety with seven games remaining.

A statement on the official Aston Villa website read: “Manager, Rémi Garde, has today left Aston Villa Football Club by mutual consent.

“The Club would like to place on record its sincere thanks to Rémi for all his efforts during a difficult period and wish him well in the future.

“Eric Black will take over as acting manager until the Club appoints a new manager.

“There will be no further comment from the Club at this stage.”

Villa have lost their last six and conceded 18 goals in the process. They are nine points behind second-bottom Newcastle.

Garde was understood to be unhappy with his failure to be backed in the transfer market in January, with Villa opting not to sign a player despite his personal efforts.

The 49-year-old’s departure follows a shake-up of the Villa board since the turn of the year, with both chief executive Tom Fox and sporting director Hendrik Almstadt quitting in the past fortnight.

Chairman Steve Hollis, who took over that role from club owner Randy Lerner in January, has been conducting an internal review.

Former Football Association chairman David Bernstein and Lord Mervyn King, a former governor of the Bank of England, have recently joined the board, while ex-Villa manager Brian Little has been appointed as an advisor.

Earlier on Tuesday former FA executive Adrian Bevington took up a role at the club, working with the board on the review into Villa’s season.

Lerner has failed to find a buyer for the club after putting it on the market two years ago.